Kejriwal reveals why he ran Delhi govt from jail, counters Amit Shah on bill to oust 'tainted' ministers

Arvind Kejriwal (File)

Former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday hit back at Union home minister Amit Shah, saying that he ran the government from jail since the BJP government at the Centre had trapped him in a "false case".

Shah has been targeting Kejriwal for continuing as the chief minister of Delhi from prison after being arrested in the liquor policy case. The home minister has repeatedly used Kejriwal's example to push for the three new bills introduced in Lok Sabha to oust jailed ministers facing criminal charges.

In two posts on X, Kejriwal hit back at Shah and PM Modi, saying that those who induct criminals into their parties and quash cases against them when they switch sides should also quit their posts.

राजनीतिक षड्यंत्र के तहत झूठे केस में फँसाकर जब केंद्र ने मुझे जेल भेजा तो मैंने जेल से 160 दिन सरकार चलायी।

पिछले सात महीनों में दिल्ली की बीजेपी सरकार ने दिल्ली का ऐसा हाल कर दिया है कि आज दिल्ली वाले उस जेल वाली सरकार को याद कर रहे हैं। कम से कम जेल वाली सरकार के वक्त बिजली… — Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) August 25, 2025

"A person who includes criminals of serious crimes in his party and gets all their cases quashed and makes them minister, deputy chief minister or chief minister, should such a minister/prime minister also resign from his post? How many years of jail should such a person get? If a false case is filed against someone and he is sent to jail and later he is acquitted, then how many years of jail should the minister who filed a false case against him get?" Kejriwal said.

He said that he did not quit as the chief minister of Delhi despite being arrested since the Centre had trapped him in a false case as part of a political conspiracy.

"When the Centre sent me to jail by trapping me in a false case as part of a political conspiracy, I ran the government from jail for 160 days," he said.

जो व्यक्ति गंभीर गुनाहों के मुज़रिमों को अपनी पार्टी में शामिल करके उनके सारे केस रफ़ा दफ़ा करके उन्हें मंत्री, उपमुख्यमंत्री या मुख्यमंत्री बना देता है, क्या ऐसे मंत्री/प्रधान मंत्री को भी अपना पद छोड़ना चाहिए? ऐसे व्यक्ति को कितने साल की जेल होनी चाहिए? अगर किसी पर झूठा केस… https://t.co/cK3kNZrY14 — Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) August 25, 2025

Kejriwal also criticised the Rekha Gupta-led BJP government in Delhi, saying that the people of national capital are remembering the government that was run from jail after witnessing the state of affairs over the last seven months.

"At least during the jail government, there was no power cut, water was available, free medicines were available in hospitals and mohalla clinics, free tests were conducted, Delhi was not in such a bad condition after a single rain, private schools were not allowed to act arbitrarily and indulge in hooliganism," he said.

Earlier, Shah told ANI in an interview that Kejriwal would have had to resign as the chief minister of Delhi had the proposed laws been in place back then.

"If this law had been in place, he would have had to resign. When the public started protesting after he came out, he resigned on moral grounds, and made Atishi ji the chief minister of Delhi because as soon as he started moving around, the public asked him questions," Shah told ANI.

He pointed out that many ministers, including himself, resigned from their posts in the past on moral grounds after facing arrest.

"If the level of morality of politics and social life is being taken down in this way, we do not agree with it," he said, in a dig at the AAP convenor.